


It’s always been you; it will always be you.

by mogitz



Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Love, Romance, Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-19 20:34:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13131657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mogitz/pseuds/mogitz
Summary: Scattered moments between Mike and Jess after the night of terror on Mount Washington.





	It’s always been you; it will always be you.

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas, @jessicanneriley!

 

 

 

___________

 

Mike remembers the first time he smiled after Hannah and Beth went missing.

 

It took a few months - he’d steadily been beating himself up, repeating the occurrences that took place that night over and over in his head on an infinite loop. He wondered if there would ever be a day that he didn’t feel crushed by the weight of his guilt.

 

But then came Jess: a blonde bombshell knocking on his apartment door in the middle of the night with pizza and beer. He had Emily had been broken up for the last month because of the guilt, but Jess wasn’t going to let their mistake ruin the rest of their lives. She pushed her way into his apartment, telling him to suck it up and stop wallowing. They were alive now, and they had to keep moving forward. 

 

She was so confident and so sure that it made him forget that crushing pressure in his chest. Made him feel alive again for the first time in what felt like forever, and by God he was going to chase that beautiful, wonderful feeling. 

 

But now… Sitting there in that hospital waiting room, the tightness in his chest has returned. Her screams and cries echo in his mind and he can’t stop picturing her face.  It’s hard to remember now how it felt that night, just the two of them, some junk food, beers, and their whole lives ahead of them. 

 

That first sideways glance.

 

The first grazing of hands.

 

That unforgettable, life-altering _ first _ kiss. She had brought him back to life. She’d saved him. And yet, he couldn’t save her.

 

It’s finally starting to hit him: Jessica is dead. If only he had gotten there a split second faster. He feels a deep ache in the back of his throat, a sob desperate to escape but he  _ can’t  _ let it. He can’t cry. He can’t scream. He can’t bring her back.

 

Mike sits forward, running his hands down the scruff of his face. He groans into his palms, hoping that when he opens his eyes this will all have been a terrible nightmare. She can’t be gone. Someone so full of life can’t be dead. 

 

He never even had a chance to tell her he loved her. Sure, their relationship was new but he did. He fell hard, and he fell fast. And now it was all gone.

 

Suddenly, there is an uproar - police officers are running around as well as some doctors and nurses. He overhears a medic on the way by: _ two _ more survivors. 

 

No… there’s  _ no _ way. He  _ saw _ her fall down the shaft, there’s just no way-

 

“ _ Mike! _ ” Sam emerges from the long corridor, her eyes wide and her face flushed. He jumps up, but his head is still swimming from the pain meds he took for his hand. She hurries over to him, gripping onto his jacket, frantically. “Mike, they found two more… It  _ could _ be-”

 

He shakes his head at her, he can’t even let himself even entertain the idea. He  _ knows _ it will kill him to even slightly hope that she made it out… it  _ has _ to be Matt and Josh. He saw her fall. He  _ watched _ it happen.

 

“Matt!” Emily yells, jumping from her seat. Matt is being led in by two rescuers, cloaked in an emergency blanket. Emily runs to wrap her arms around her boyfriend, peppering kisses on his face, “Matt, I’m _ so _ sorry. I can’t believe you’re alive-” Their reunion is cut short by Sam, who is immediately at their side.

 

“Matt… who else did they find?” Sam’s eyes desperately search his face. Matt is dazed, exhausted. It took the searchers hours to find him. He shakes away his stupor.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Who else is  _ alive? _ ” Mike clarifies.

 

“Mike?” He hears his name called out, and he is sure he had to have imagined it. “Mike!!” He turns and there she is: broken and bleeding but alive. He can’t move, he can’t breathe. He blinks away the shocked tears in his eyes as she hurls herself into him, gripping onto his jacket and sobbing.

 

“Jessica,” he breathes, his voice hitching. 

 

He wants to ask her how, he wants to know everything, but all he can bring himself to care about right now is the mere fact that by some miracle, he is holding her in his arms again. 

 

“I was so scared,” she sobs.

 

He pulls her from him so he can look at her face, cupping her cheeks in his hand, “I- I _ tried,  _ Jess. You have to believe me, I tried so damn hard-” he chokes, trying not to let the emotion overtake his ability to speak coherently to her. 

 

“You came for me,” she cries. “I  _ knew _ you came for me…” She hugs onto him again tightly, and he feels his heart expand. The fact that she knows he came for her warms him from the inside out. 

  
  
  


_________

 

It takes Jessica a whole three months to heal - but even when her scars begin to fade, her emotional wounds remain fresh and gaping. He carries the last of his moving boxes into her apartment, setting it on her kitchen counter - correction: _ their _ kitchen counter.

 

She couldn’t handle being alone, especially at night, anymore. If he is being honest, neither can he. She’d often call, asking to him to come over. He’d stay with her ‘til she fell asleep. She wouldn’t sleep without a light on, now. 

 

It was all going to take some time, they knew that. Her doctor had her on some anti-anxiety medications but they made her drowsy, but she always slept better when Mike was there.

 

So, when they realized that he’d been there every night for three weeks, it was Mike who finally asked, “should I just move in?” It was a move that was less about romance and more about convenience, but the way her face lit up and the way her eyes shined for the first time since the night of the mountain…  _ well, _ he’d never seen anything quite as radiant or brilliant in his life.

 

He looks around the apartment, and he surprisingly doesn’t feel scared. It feels right. He wants this. He wants to be there for her when she wakes up in the middle of the night. He wants to hang framed photos of them on the walls and plan their future and sit through her cheesy, CW teen dramas every week.

 

He wants to make her smile like that every single day for the rest of his life.

 

“Who’da thought that Michael Munroe would ever be tamed,” she teases lightly, cuddling up to him on the couch. He just chuckles, pressing a kiss into her hair. 

 

He makes a mental note to look at rings tomorrow. Maybe it’s fast but… she’s _ never  _ letting Jess get away from him again.

 

_________

 

“Babe, come on. We’re going to be late,” Mike tries to gently coax Jess out pf the bathroom through the door. He leans his forehead against it, exhaustedly. 

 

“Let’s just stay in,” her voice leaks back. Mike sighs and checks his watch - their reservations are in fifteen minutes clear across town. Soon, staying in will be the  _ only _ option.

 

“What? Jess, you hounded me for  _ months _ to get these reservations-”

 

“I just don’t want to go anymore, okay?” she snaps back, and the thick silence settles between them before she quietly adds, “I look awful.” 

 

“That’s impossible.” The door slightly cracks open and her beautiful face comes into view. He can see her peeking at him through long, thick lashes and perfect make-up. Her golden hair is curled and up, and he doesn’t even need to see the other 98% of her to know she is a bombshell.

 

“I look like a monster,” her voice breaks, and he sees the glistening of tears in her eyes. She hesitantly pulls the door open and she comes into view: she’s got a slinky, low-cut, red dress that hugs her body perfectly - he can’t help but stare.

 

Mike’s heart falls to his stomach when he realizes why she’s been stalling: her scars. She’d been so self-conscious about them ever since they’d gotten back. She’d been covering up with sweaters and scarves, but tonight, she had put on the most gorgeous dress she could find.... But she didn’t feel gorgeous.

 

“I just… I wanted to wear something nice for you,” she whimpers, her arms falling to her sides defeatedly. “It’s our anniversary…” Mike doesn’t hesitate to bring her close to him, wrapping her up in his arms. She looks up at him and he can’t stop himself from pressing a soft kiss against her perfect, pouted lips.

 

“You are  _ stunning _ ,” he assures her, his voice low. 

 

“But… my scars,” she replies, “do you think people will look at me?”

 

“Sweetie… they only reason people will be looking at you tonight will be because you’re drop-dead-gorgeous and that’s a fact.” Her smiles returns, and with it so does his.

 

“ _ Orrr… _ ” she says coyly, playing with his tie. “We can just stay in… have some pizza and beer and just forget the dress altogether…” 

 

That’s more than enough for Mike. He hoists her up, pressing another kiss to her mouth. A night in sounds like perfection.

 

________

  
  
  


“Does it look like it’s going to rain?” Jess wonders aloud. She crosses her arms, staring out the window at the huge, sprawling, landscaped lawn. She could see her wedding beginning to take form - workers were setting out chairs, filling mason jars with baby’s breath, hanging vintage, italian lights across the dancefloor.

 

“It’s  _ definitely _ not going to rain,” Sam chuckles back, optimistically. “Never in the history of the universe was there ever a sunnier,  _ un _ rainy day.” Jess isn’t so convinced. While there isn’t even the  _ slightest  _ hint of a cloud in the sky, it doesn’t mean it won’t morph into some kind of downpour within the next few hours. She honestly doesn’t expect anything less. 

 

“It  _ might _ rain,” Emily shrugs, steaming her bridesmaid dress in the corner of the bridal suite. Sam shoots her a quick glare, ready to do damage control, but her face softens when Emily gives her a small wink. Ashley doesn’t even notice, though. She only sighs, her arms dropping to her sides. 

 

“Aren’t you going to get dressed?” Sam suddenly asks, sweeping into the room from the open, french doors on the patio. Her long blonde hair and silky pink robe trail behind her like some kind of greek goddess. Jess blows the stray bangs from her face and plops down on her vanity seat. 

 

“Not until my makeup and hair are done,” she replies absently, staring at her own reflection. She couldn’t believe she was getting married today. Her stomach had been a constant knot for days. Why was she she so scared?? She’d braved a horrific night and survived, this should be nothing.

 

And then the rain rolls in, and Jessica is trying in vain to keep from crying in her perfect makeup and white, form-fitting wedding dress - it’s low cut and revealing because she’s come to grips with her scars. But leave it to Jessica Riley to end up with rain on her wedding day.

 

“Jessica?” she hears Mike’s voice trailing from behind the door to her Bridal suite.

 

“Don’t come in!” she shouts, hustling over to the door to make sure it doesn’t open. “It’s bad luck-” she stops, her words catching in her throat as she watches out the window: multiple caterers and wedding ushers are desperately trying to get her wedding ceremony under a tent, but it’s taking long. Everything is ruined.

 

Mike cracks the door open, peeking in, “I think we have gotten enough bad luck today, don’t you think?” He goes to chuckle but his face sobers the moment he sees her. Mike is certain he’s never seen anything more beautiful.

 

“Have I mentioned how lucky I am?” he utters. She smiles, smoothing down the white, satin of her dress.

 

“It feels like a waste,” she chokes.

 

“I’m sure we can find a way to put it to good use,” he replies, cheekily. “Wanna get outta here?”

 

Mike and Jess marry at the justice of the peace that day, away from the bustle of the crowd… and it’s perfect.

 

Because it’s just them… the way it was meant to be.

 

_______

 

“Jessica, look at me. You have to  _ breathe- _ ” Mike tells her, smoothing down her hair. She looks up at him with frantic eyes.

 

“I don’t want to do this, I’m scared,” she cries. He leans down, locking his gaze with hers.

 

“Jess… babe. You are so strong. You are a fighter, you can do this, this is  _ nothing. _ ” She tries to object but when she sees the love in his eyes, she knows he’s telling the truth.

 

Jessica listens because giving birth is NOTHING compared to surviving that night on the mountain. 

  
  


Hannah-Beth Munroe is born on February second, and she’s perfect. So much better than anyone could have described.

 

Mike looks at her perfect wife, the one who went to hell and back for him, and who has now brought him this angel… His heart expands and he wonders if he’s ever really known love before this moment.

 

“I love you, Jess,” he whispers, the two of them staring down at their pride and joy.

 

“Mike… you saved me. In more ways than I can count,” she chokes. He presses a kiss to her hair, ready for everything else life has to offer then.


End file.
